In memoriam: RC-Ryder (1946 – 2010)

S2KI mourns the loss of its long-term member RC-Ryder (John Weske).  On Saturday, April 10th, John suffered a fatal heart attack in Dayton, Ohio while spending time with his grandchildren.  His unexpected death has come as a shock to not only his family, but to all that have known him well, especially members of the Vintage S2000 owners forum where John was an active participant.

John’s Obituary:

John T. Weske, DVM, 64 of Marblehead, Ohio, died suddenly Saturday afternoon, April 10th in Dayton, Ohio.
John was born March 27th, 1946, the son of John and Lois Weske of Sandusky. He was a 1964 graduate of Sandusky High School and received a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Ohio State University. He continued his studies at John Hopkins University where he received a Master of Public Health degree specializing in epidemiology and infectious diseases.
John retired from the Army as a Lt. Col. During his years in the military he served in the CIA, DIA and after his retirement worked with the Department of Defense. He was an avid boater and a car and motorcycle enthusiast.
John is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Weske of Marblehead; children: Jennifer and Robert Monroe of Melissa, Texas, Major John and Regina Weske of Dayton, Ohio, Ashley Bevill of Frederick, Maryland; 8 grandchildren: Connor and Collin Monroe, Lauren, Brooke, Kate, Julia and Anna Weske, and Ivan Bevill. He is also survived by his father, John Weske of Sandusky and 2 sisters, Jan Bucholz of Sandusky and Sylvia Yostes of Germany. John was preceded in death by his mother, Lois Weske.
A memorial service will be held in the Ohio Veterans Home chapel on Saturday, April 24th at 11 AM.
In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations go to Stein Hospice, 1200 Sycamore Line, Sandusky, Ohio 44870.

Here is a link to the discussion thread in Vintage started by member GX2 that contains  feelings and outpourings of grief from our members who came in touch with John. S2KI has decided to commemorate RC-Ryder’s memory by awarding his handle, honorary lifetime membership. While the world and all of us here at S2KI have lost a valuable member and friend, his memories and his life’s work will continue to endure.

Some of RC-Ryder’s memorable quotes (compiled by tof):

“Let’s try something new. Perhaps if we understood each other better, we could better reconcile each other’s comments. Instead of criticizing each other’s viewpoints, let’s opine on what we think are progressives and conservatives.” -John the peacemaker in Politics
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“I’ll drink to that, and would like to meet you too. ”
– RC, in the same thread, wrapping up what had been a pretty lively debate with another vintage member
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“‘ to get it done and done right, give your toughest, most demanding, most difficult and most time sensitive tasks to your busiest and most productive employee.’ The very best always step up to the challenge…”
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“Some years ago my road rage was tempered a bit when I pounded the damn steering wheel of my Jeep Cherokee, and the whole assembly fell into my lap. Cost me 400 bucks to fix. That taught me to find new outlets for expressing myself.”

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“I try to post at least once a day to let folks know this old Vint is still kickin’.”

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RC-Ryder’s life and the lessons in it for us are summed up best in the following post by his wife, Elizabeth:

“To all here who have met and known John,
The lesson I learned after 36 years with John is the true meaning of the word friend. No task was too difficult nor any road too long if you were his friend. Since he was the “go to guy” for our family the large footprint he left will be terribly missed. Please know that the kind words and memories from all of you will be held close to my heart. The pictures will always be treasured. You can easily see how he felt about the time he spent with all of the S2000 community. Again thank you for your kindness.“

May the memory of RC-Ryder never wane and continue to inspire his family and all those that were lucky to have known him. Our prayers and best wishes are with his kith & kin.

Images courtesy of Ruined2 and Kyras.

NOTE: S2KI welcomes the opinions of its members on the S2000 and on all topics related to the S. Should you feel the creative urge to pen a few words then by all means do so and PM Energetic, Aashish2 or Onehots2k OR send us links to what you would like us to write about and we will feature you (or your community) on the S2KI Home Page.